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Deco X20 setup question

bertie_bassett

Pro Member
I've purchased a Deco X20 mesh system to replace a set of Tenda MW6s that I currently run with my Three-supplied Huawei CPE Pro. The X20 was reviewed positively on this site a few years ago and currently on what seems like a very good deal on Amazon.

I'm going to attempt to setup the Deco's tonight, but just have a few questions ahead of doing that.

  1. Currently, I have my CPE Pro acting as the DHCP server, with my mesh satellites in 'bridge mode'. When you initially turn on the first Deco and follow through the setup, does it detect that there is an active DHCP server already on the network? If it does, does it then offer Access Point mode as part of the setup, or if not, what does it do?
  2. I've been reading some horror stories (like this one) that describe odd, network-killing behaviour with the Decos set to access point mode still taking over DHCP duties if / when the router is out of action. Something called 'smart DHCP', apparently. Does anyone have any experience of this, and is it likely to kill my network if I have to reboot my router (which I have to do relatively regularly)?
  3. The potential issue in question #2 could be mitigated by using the X20 as my DHCP server. Since the X20 has much more in-depth setup options than the Tendas did - I can fix IP addresses with the Deco for example - then I could put the Huawei 5G CPE Pro into bridge mode and still run my network how I want to. However, it seems that Three have locked down the CPE Pro so much that the option for Bridge mode isn't available. I've seen screenshots like this one, but the 'bridge mode' option does not appear in my router.

1697021600782.png



However, one thing I can do is turn off the DHCP server in the router using this page:

1697021622246.png



If I do this, then would the router behave as if it were in bridge mode and allow the Deco to assume DHCP duties? Or would I need a different subnet or something in the Deco, and if so how would I go about setting that up, either in the Deco, or in the Huawei, or both? Finally, would I still be able to access the router via its online interface for management / rebooting purposes should I need to (it's in an inaccessible place in my house so being able to do this remotely without wrecking my DHCP allocations is definitely required).

Long post, lots of qs, sorry, but I'm curious as to what I can expect from the Decos.

Thanks in advance!
 
I run my Deco satellites in AP mode and they work flawlessly.
I leave the DHCP to the ISP router and it works well.
Pretty sure when in AP mode DHCP functionality would never be active when the main router is turned off. I’ve reset mine and experienced power outages and the deco units have come back online all fine. (Virgin 3 hub & Virgin 5 hub)
With the X20 been dual band , you will see a vast improvement in wireless performance if you can use wired Backhaul.
 
I set the Decos up last night and they seem really good - speeds through them are basically the same as I get on my PC hardwired to the router, so I’m happy!

During setup the decos defaulted to router mode, which was fine as they picked a different subnet to the one used by the router. Switching to access point mode was easy, and I was pleased to find out that a firmware update was pushed onto them which added a toggle to disable Smart DHCP, which I think was the “feature” causing all the problems others were experiencing. A test router reboot and all is fine. Happy!

Wired backhaul unfortunately isn’t an option for me, and the solid construction of my house presents a challenge for wireless mesh devices. But the Decos seem like a huge step up from the Tendas. Happy days.
 
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